A similar work method and apparatus is known from the European patent document nr. 0 590 269 A1, submitted Jul. 30, 1993, titled: “Article Packaging System” of the applicant Highland Supply Corporation, 1111 Sixth Street, Highland, Ill. 62249 (USA), inventors CRAIG Frank, 90 Inez, Valley Park, Mo. 63088 (USA); STRAETER, Joseph G., 3817 Praire Road, Highland Ill. 62249 (USA) and WEDER, Donald E., 621 Main Street, Highland Ill. 62249 (USA).
Here, it concerns a modular system for packing articles for shipment, especially potted plants, which are put into a decorative cover and subsequently automatically placed into a protecting cover, after which the packed plants are ready for putting into a shipment box, in which the several components of the system can also be adjusted to the different packing demands and circumstances, such as fragrance, gas tightness and such.
The work method for packing an article, mostly a plant or botanic item, consists of a number of steps such as: applying or feeding the article with an external surface, then applying a decorative cover around the external surface of the article to form an attractively packed article, and then automatically applying a cover around the already decoratively covered article and the apparatus is also claimed for the execution of these specific work methods.
With this invention the concerned potted plant is covered and after that held above an opened cover which is then sealed for, for example, shipment.
The above described work method and apparatus has disadvantages with regard to packing flower bouquets, being that loose flower bouquets must be brought from a horizontal lying position as a bouquet into a vertical position, to, then be slided or dropped into an opened cover without losing the coherence of the bouquet, which with the known apparatus and work method is not possible.
In practice the packing or covering of large amounts of loose flower bouquets is mainly done manually, which is very time-consuming or the flower bouquets are fed by means of a conveyor belt to a slanting chute, after which the flower bouquet falls into an opened cover and after which, with a binding machine, a binding wire is wound around the stems of the flower bouquet. Also this last method is not very fast to efficiently process large amounts of flower bouquets.